Chemistry Is Love
by Its-in-your-eyes
Summary: Horatio's niece has transferred to his team for reasons unknown. How will the team react to the new member? And will sparks fly between CSIs? [ T for violence and language. Might go to M in later chapters ]
1. A Sudden Arrival

A Sudden Arrival

Horatio's Little Niece?!

The clock on the wall ticked slowly as Horatio Caine sat behind his oak desk. He tapped his foot impatiently as he finally stood up. He walked over to the huge glass window, that over looked Miami's busy streets. His mind was zooming through conclusions and assumptions as he just waited. The clock continued ticking as minutes seemed to turn into hours. "Mr. Caine there's a girl waiting for you. She says her name's Samantha…" "Dunlap." Horatio interrupted her as he waltzed past her and down the long corridor. As he rounded the corner, he was stopped in his tracks. There she stood, her light chestnut hair hung loosely around her shoulders as she stood in front of a window. To Horatio's surprise, he noticed she was in a short jean skirt, wearing a black sleeveless top, and black leather boots that ended a little before her knees. Horatio had to admit that she had grown up over the years, and she wasn't a little child anymore.

Samantha had caught Horatio's reflection in the polished glass. Turning on her heel, a bright smile creased her lips. "Uncle Caine!" She almost squealed as she ran into Horatio's open arms. 'On second thought, she hasn't changed a bit.' Caine thought to himself with a small chuckle. "How have you been, Sam?" He asked when they finally let go of each other. "I've been alright." She nodded, still holding onto the tip of his dress jacket. He caught her little jester and it reminded him of when she was just a kid. She'd always hold the tip of his sleeve when she was nervous, instead of showing it like other's might. "How about I give you a tour around?" He offered, motioning down the hallway. "It's not needed, I just want to get to work as soon as possible." She smiled lightly. "Yes, but I'd like to personally introduce you to the team…" He trailed off, beginning to walk away. "Uh! Alright, Mr. Caine!" She jogged after him quickly. "Mr. Caine?" He echoed her last words with a raised brow. "Well… It'd be unprofessional if I went around calling you 'Uncle' while on the job. Plus I don't want you to treat me any different then you'd treat other people." She spoke proudly as they walked. "Alright. Deal." He nodded, a grin on his face.

The two came to a stop in front of one of the labs. Inside the lab was a fairly good looking young dark haired man and a very pretty blonde woman. They looked up at Samantha and Horatio, rather surprised. "This… Is Samantha Dunlap. Starting today she'll be on our team." Horatio began, "Sam, this is Eric Delko and Calleigh Duquesne. Some of our finest." "It's nice to meet you, Sam." Callie reached out and shook her hand, "You too." She nodded. Eric also extended his hand and grasped hers, "Nice to have you aboard." He flashed a charming smirk. She nodded again, "Thank you." "Mind showing her the ropes?" Horatio asked as he slipped on his signature sunglasses. Sam gave him a cross glance, feeling she didn't need help to understand something she spent years in collage for. "No, not at all." Eric spoke up, still having that smile on his face. With that Caine nodded and fled the lab; leaving his nervous little niece to stare at the strangers.

Callie could sense the girl's nervousness, having been new on the job at one point as well, she could relate to Sam's uneasiness. "How about I show you the shooting range?" Callie volunteered, "I need to check out this Jericho 941 anyway." She motioned for her to join her as she walked out. "Uh, alright." Sam followed quickly, obedient to her superiors. Eric watched her leave as another smirk came to his lips. Just as Callie and Sam had left, Tim Speedle came waltzing into the room, a file in hand. "Look at this. It's a report of the evidence from the Kidnapping case that Horatio's working." He almost slammed the flimsy file on the counter in front of Eric. "What is it?" He asked, flipping the file open. "Notice anything off?" Speed took a seat on the other side of the counter. After a few moments, Eric perked a brow, "The glass was found on the outside of the window?" Speed nodded at Eric's question, "Exactly. That means the kidnapper broke the window from the inside out." "Why would they do that?" Eric asked as he stood. "I don't know, but I think we should talk to the dad again." Speed hissed as he stood up and left the lab, Delko following behind him.

"So why'd you decide to transfer from New York?" Callie inquired, trying to spark a conversation between the two quiet women. "Uh, heard my Uncle was having some problems… So I thought I'd come and try to be useful to him." She answered quietly. "Problems? You mean personal or work related?" Callie's interest was sparked. "Just those agents, is all." She mumbled. Callie sensed she was uncomfortable again, "Well I'm sure you'll do well here, Sam." Sam nodded silently. As the two entered the range, Callie's pager began to vibrate. She glanced down at it, "Well looks like you're starting today. We'll have to save the shooting for some other day." "You mean… I get to go out on the field?" Her eyes lit up with passion. "Mhm. As long as you think you're ready." A small smirk came to the delicate woman's face. "Think? I know I'm ready!" Sam was so determined to prove herself to her Uncle that she nearly ran off in the direction of the parking lot. Callie had to jog to keep up with the smaller girl. As Callie jumped into the driver's seat and Sam into the passenger's of the silver Hummer; Callie's cell phone began to ring. She flipped it open, "Hello? CSI Duquesne speaking." "We've got an emergency!" The urgent voice of one of her co-workers was clearly heard on the other line. "Right. We're on it." Callie clipped the phone shut, revved up the engine, and spend out of the lot like a bat out of Hell.


	2. I'm Not Afraid

I'm Not Afraid

Three Lives Hang In The Balance!

The silver Hummer H2 came zooming into the crowded scene. Reporters were badgering other CSI, Detectives were asking witnesses questions, and the swat team were looking at a map of the area. "What's going on?" Callie asked as she slid from the high Hummer. "We came here to ask the dad a question about the kidnapping of his daughter. When we walked up to the door, everything appeared to be fine. He let us in, next thing I know… He's got a revolver to Speed's head. He told me to get out or he was going to shoot." Eric explained as they could only watch helplessly from behind the yellow 'caution' tape. "Is the little girl with them?" Sam spoke up, looking through a pair of binoculars. "I think. The door to her room was closed." He rubbed his forehead, trying not to panic. "What does he want for the girl's return?" Callie asked confused about Mr. Clifton's intentions. "That's just it. He wants the girl. Him and his wife are going through a hellish divorce. This guy's under a lot of distress. We need to get both the girl and Speed out of there before he starts shooting." Eric spoke as he paced back and forth. "Great. Then we don't have much time." Sam mumbled, handing the binoculars to Callie before dashing off. "Wait! Where are you going?!" Callie yelled after her. "To find Horatio!" She smiled over her shoulder as she disappeared into a crowd.

Sam spotted her uncle standing over a cop car with Detective Tripp and some swat members. "Caine!" She came huffing, stopping beside her uncle. "This isn't the time…" He sounded irritated as he looked over the map with the swat team. "But I have a plan!" She spoke up again, her cheeks slightly pink. "Leave this to the professionals, sweetheart." Detective Tripp shook his head. "I may not be experienced… But I know there's a scared little girl in there and I'm not willing to let her down!" She exploded, her anger rising immensely, "While you guys stand here thinking of a way to get in there with all your men, that little girl could be dead, and one of your own as well. Are you willing to risk that? Because I sure the Hell aren't." She clenched her fists, a determined look in her sapphire eyes. They all looked at each other, knowing the answer already. "Mr. Clifton wants us to bring five million to him, alone… And the deliverer must be a female." Caine finally spoke up as he turned to his niece. A grin lit up her face, "At your service!" "Alright. Suit her up." Caine commanded the swat officers. Tripp watched as they led her to a small van, "Are you sure this is the right thing to do? I mean, she's your niece… And she just started today." Caine slid on his sunglasses, "She's not experienced, but I've known her all her life. I have faith, she'll get the job done. Sam's exactly like her mother, and her mother won't let the girl or our CSI die…" He trailed off, "I just hope she doesn't give her life up." He muttered as he turned back to the huge Miami home in front of him.

Sam steadied her hand as she pressed the doorbell. She was dressed in black slacks, black boots, and a CSI jacket over her sleeveless shirt. In her left hand was the brief case with five mill in it. She took a deep breath as the door knob turned and slowly opened. "Mr. Clifton?" She raised a brow, her voice steady. "Do you have the money?" He asked, his hands slightly raised, no gun in sight. 'This isn't him. It must be the CSI.' She thought, seeing if she could glance around him. She noticed the reflection of another man in the mirror on the wall. The real Mr. Clifton stood a little ways behind Speed. The deranged man held a semi-automatic to the mid section of Speed's back. "Keh. Yes, sir. It's all here. Should I come in, or do you wish to come out?" She spoke slightly cocky. "Well, I'd prefer to come out but--" Speed began, "In! Get in here!" The man ordered. With that, she slid in around Speed, and stood in the hall. Speed closed the door on command. The man known as Mr. Clifton looked like he was sleep deprived and on Cocaine. He wore a dress suit that was messed up, the tie hanging loosely, and his shirt half tucked in. "I'm unarmed, sir." She spoke up after taking in his appearance. "I don't trust you. You there, search her." He motioned with his gun from Speed to Sam. With a slow nod, Speed approached Sam, coming to a halt in front of her. She looked off to the side, spreading her arms and her legs slightly. He kept eye contact with her as he patted her arms down, her sides, and her legs. "She's clean." He took a step back. "Good. Now open the briefcase." He instructed, his hand shaking as he held the gun pointed at her. "Alright…" She slowly got onto one knee and flipped the case open, moving it sideways for him to see. Mr. Clifton took a step towards the money, but Sam slammed the briefcase shut. "Not until I see the girl." Her voice was stern. Speed gave her a look like 'what the Hell are you doing?' but she didn't give it a second thought. "My daughter? You can't have her. No one can. If I can't have her… I'll take her with me… To the grave." He cocked his gun as he rambled. "Now, there's no need for that. She just wants to make sure your daughter's alright." Speed quickly spoke. "Lindsey! Come out here, honey." He called out, looking in the direction of the girl's room. There was a slight pause before the door slowly creaked open and a small girl peeked out. Lindsey appeared to be about six with blonde curly hair and baby blue eyes; she held a white snow teddy close to her as she walked over to her father. "Hey there, sweetie. Are you alright?" Sam spoke softly, looking the small child over. She nodded quickly. "See she's fine." Mr. Clifton sneered. Sam's eyes flickered with annoyance by the man's behavior. "I can see that. But you're not." A small smirk tugged at the corner's of her lips.


	3. Thank You

Thank You

Speedle NOT Speedo!

Mr. Clifton stood there, now the paranoia was setting in from her words. He moved his gun from her to Speed and then back to her. "What do you mean? What's going on? What are you going to do?" He panicked, moving Lindsey behind him. "Nothing. Nothing's going to happen, Mr. Clifton. Now just settle down." Speed tried to comfort him, slightly reaching out. "Keep your hands up! Stay away!" He shouted. Speed nodded a few times, lifting them back up, "Alright. Alright. I'm just saying…" "Shut up! Just shut up!" He shouted once again. Lindsey was beginning to shake, afraid of her father's loud voice. Sam glanced from Speed to Mr. Clifton to Lindsey. "Lindsey do you want to go home?" She asked finally. Her question brought all the heat off of Speed and onto her. "She's already home! Her home is here. With me!" He pointed the gun at the female CSI. "I don't call this a home. You're holding a gun to two CSIs right in front of your daughter." Sam continued, "How do you think she feels about this? Hm? She's scared to death." The paranoid man's eyes darted from the CSIs to his daughter quite a few times. "Do you want her to see your brain splattered all over the walls?" She cocked a inquiring brow. He bit his bottom lip, "That… That won't happen. They won't shoot if I have my daughter here." She frowned, "Are you really that stupid? They've got snipers everywhere. They could shoot through the windows at any moment. And your daughter will have to live with seeing your bloodied body fall to the floor. Do you want that to happen?" She inquired. "No… Wait! This is a trick." He stepped away from them. "I don't have time for bloody tricks. I can tell you this. You're not going to walk out of this house alive unless you give up." She hissed venomously. "No! They'll kill me anyway! I won't give up." Mr. Clifton gripped the gun with both hands. "Listen to yourself. Do you really want to die? Do you? If you go to jail, at least you'll still be able to see your daughter. You'll see how beautiful of a woman she will become. You want to see that, don't you?" After a moment he nodded, "I… I do." "Then put the gun down. And… Take my hand. I swear to you… I won't let them hurt you… Or Lindsey." She gently lifted her hand out to him, "Please." Her voice turned pleading.

With that he hesitantly slid the gun into her hand. She slowly stood up and placed the gun on the table in the hall. She then stretched her hand out again and Mr. Clifton took it. In his other hand he held Lindsey's. She nodded to Speed to open the door. "We're coming out!" Speed yelled out, "We're unarmed. Do not shoot. Do not shoot!" To make sure they didn't he stepped out first, his hands up. He was followed by Sam, Mr. Clifton, and Lindsey. Once out, Mr. Clifton hugged his little girl one last time before he was handcuffed and placed in the back of the squad car. "Good work, Sam. Good work." Horatio grinned, shaking her hand. "You alright, Speed?" He turned to his CSI. "Yea, I'm good. A little shaken up. But good." He nodded a few times, his hands on his hips. "Dunlap! He wants to talk to you!" Tripp yelled, leaning on the squad car. She jogged over to the car were Mr. Clifton was. "Yes, sir?" She leaned down to the open window of the car. "Thank you." He said simply, tears in the corners of his eyes. She understood and nodded, leaning away from the window as the car drove away. "You're welcome."

"So how'd she do in there?" Eric asked Speed as they walked to his Hummer. "She was good… Very good. She got into his head. I'm gonna have to watch out for her." He spoke as he hoisted himself up into the huge Hummer. "Oh? Feeling threatened by the new girl?" Eric smirked, also getting into the Hummer. "No. I'm just saying she's got a way of getting people to do things." Speed looked off to the side, "And a very soft body." "Woo! Woo! How do you know that?" Eric's eyes widened as he pulled away from the scene. "Mr. Clifton made me pat her down." He smirked over at Eric. "Oh, you lucky…" He bit his lip, "Damn." He just shook his head at Speed's smirking. After a few more moments of laughing, someone beeped on the scanner. "Hello, Delko speaking." He answered, holding the 'talk' button down. "'Ello! Is Speedo there?" Sam's perky voice was heard on the other side. Delko could hear Callie giggling in the background. "It's Speedle. Not Speedo." Speed glared at the scanner. "Oh. My bad. Well in my defense, Callie said it was Speedo!" You could hear her wince when Callie lightly punched her arm. "Anyway, we were just checking out you, Speed." Callie tried not to giggle. "Yea, yea. I'm fine." He rolled his eyes. "Okay! Over and out, Speedo!" Sam quickly shut off the scanner before Speed could respond. Eric bit his bottom lip, trying to stop himself from laughing. Speed gave him a 'don't you dare' glare before looking out the window again. "Oh yea, Speed. You're defiantly gonna have to look out for her." Eric snickered. "Just drive." Speed sighed irritated.

Once Speed and Eric made it back to the office, they headed to the DNA lab. Sitting on a sliding chair at one of the counters was Sam, Callie was no where to be found. "Hey, should she be alone like this?" Speed looked at Eric. They stood just outside the door; watching her. "She's not a five year old. And she did come from one of the finest academies." Eric pointed out. They watched her slide from on end to the other as she did tests. "Yea, but… She's new. What if she breaks something?" Speed looked back to Eric again. Eric was about to defend her when the both heard a thump. They looked back in the room and Sam was no where to be found. Quickly they opened the door and walked briskly over to the counter. "I'm okay!" Sam laid on the floor, smiling sheepishly. Speed sighed, "I told you she was gonna break something." "Hey! I didn't break anything!" She protested, getting up. "You almost broke your skull on the floor. I was close." He contradicted. "Whatever, Speedo." She hopped back onto her chair. "I said, it's Speedle not Speedo!" He growled. "I'll just leave you two alone." Delko snickered, walking out before they could object. "So what are you working on?" He sighed again. "DNA from the Anderson case." Sam held up the file, "It matched. You may arrest your suspect." She proclaimed proudly. "Thanks." He took the file and headed out. "Stop by anytime, Speedo." She looked back down at some other paperwork. Speed had stopped right before leaving. He turned 180 and stormed over to her. "Hm?" She looked up, just as he pushed her back against the opposite counter.


	4. Confrontation

Confrontation

This Is Our Case!

The tension rose as Speed leaned closer to the nervous face of Sam. She could feel his hot breath on her own mouth, the distance between them seemed to get smaller with each second. His dark chocolate eyes bored into hers as if breaking her down. It felt as if one small movement could set off a chain reaction between the two. Sam gripped the edge of the counter tightly, her knuckles almost turning white. Her heart raced faster as the stand off continued on. Minutes ticked by as they just kept staring into each other's eyes. Neither seemed to back down, though Sam could feel a knot forming in her mid section. She didn't like being this close to another person one bit. But she wasn't about to back down from him. Who knows how he'd tease her if she cowered now. She bit her bottom lip lightly and stuck it up.

All the sudden a 'cough' at the door made them reluctantly look in that direction. Callie stood in the door way with a smug smirk on her delicate lips. "Am I interrupting something?" Oh, you could hear the 'Ooolala' in her voice. Which made Sam want to smack her like she wanted to smack Delko for leaving them in the first place. "Uh, no. Nothing at all. Just getting the results." Speed was already headed out. He didn't look back. "Uh huh." She made her way over to the, still stunned, girl. "I'm sorry I interrupted your… Getting to know each other time." Callie apologized, though the smirk was still there. Sam rolled her eyes, "It wasn't like that. We were just talking." She mumbled as she looked over the file Callie had handed her. "Right. Talking. Yea. Looked a little more then that." She giggled. "Whatever." Sam gritted her teeth.

"Anyway, we've got our second case!" Callie seemed to squeal with excitement. It really seemed like Callie was getting in the whole 'partner' thing. Sam, on the other hand, rather work alone. With a sigh she dared ask, "What's the case?" "Glad you asked!" Callie smiled wide, "We're going to the zoo, Sami!" She grabbed her bag and was out the door. "Wha? Zoo? Hey, wait up, Cal! And don't call me 'Sami'!" She grabbed her things and hollered as she ran off after the blond CSI. Sam had caught up with Callie at the elevator. "Why are we going to the zoo?" She asked as they waited. "Well, one of their zookeepers was eaten by a lion." She answered with a large smile. 'Oh gosh, she's creepy.' Sam thought as she watched the giddy woman. "So what's the scene like? I mean, how'd he die and stuff…" She raised a brow. "Well, they think the gate locked on its own while the keeper was in there." Callie answered. "And I take it, you don't?" She smiled lightly. "Well… It's kind of hard to get locked in… When you have a key to get out." She pointed out rather proudly. "Ah. Well we shall see then." The elevator opened and both woman stepped in.

After a bit afternoon traffic, the two smiling woman made it to the bustling zoo. "They didn't close the zoo?" Callie inquired with a perked brow as she stared at all the crowds of parents and children. "I guess money's more important then a dead guy." Sam shrugged as she helped Callie carry in the forensic cases. "What's Delko and Speedo doing here, Cal?" She asked as she opened one of the kits. "I don't know. They shouldn't be here. It's not their case." Callie waved the two men over. "Hey, guys. What are you doing here?" She asked, her right hand on her hip. "It's our case. Why wouldn't we be here?" Eric said as he put on his latex gloves. "Uh, no. It's not." Callie frowned. "Yes. It is. H said so." Eric shot back. "But we have the file. That H gave us." Callie held up her evidence. "Well, it looks like Caine made a mistake." Sam spoke up, her hands crossed behind her head. "So. Who gets the case?" Speed looked over some finger print powder as he casually asked. "We were here first. It's our case." Delko stepped up to Callie. Callie didn't back down, "We have the file. It's our case." Sam sighed, not liking all this confrontation. Speed ran his hand through his dark hair as the two continued arguing. "While they fight, the evidence is being destroyed." Sam mumbled, not meaning for Speed to hear. "I agree." He tossed her a small jar of print powder, "Lets just partner up, since we're the only ones agreeing." After a quick decision she nodded, "Alright." "You guys, take on that fishing boat accident." Speed said, picking up the forensic cases, "We've got this one. Since we're the ones agreeing." With that, the two left Callie and Delko staring in disbelief.

* * *

_Short chapter, I know.  
I'm running out of ideas.  
The next chapter will defiantly be longer and more interesting.  
__**Reviews are loved.  
**And let me know if I should keep writing._


	5. Simba's Pride

Simba's Pride

You're Not My Partner.

The hot Miami sun beat down on the two CSIs as they made their way passed the crowds. "Is Miami always this hot?" Sam huffed as they made it to the lion's den. "It gets hotter." Her partner answered as he looked around. "Ah, you two must be the CSI!" Mr. Debrowsky came jogging up to them. He was dressed in a suit and tie, which made Sam give him a questioning look. "You're the zoo's owner?" Speed asked, popping open his forensic case. "Why, yes. Yes, I am." He nodded. "Dean was killed over by the cave entrance." He pointed to a small fake cave like thing. "But I don't understand why the police have to investigate this. It was obviously an accident. Dean got locked in some how, probably forgot his key in his locker." The zoo owner impatiently tapped his foot. "We're going to have to see his locker as well." Speed spoke up, pulling out a camera. With a frustrated huff, Mr. Debrowsky waltzed off towards the locker area. "Cheery guy." Sam mumbled. "Seems like he's got something to hide." Speed nodded as they then made their way down to the staff entrance of the cage. "Well, we should be safe… They took the lion out… Right?" She looked over at him. "Lets hope." He said as he slowly pushed the gate open. "Oh great. Death by hungry lion." She sighed sarcastically as she followed him in.

Blood splatter covered the outer coating of the cave. Also, there was a smear of blood, leading into the cave. "Which meant that the lion attacked Dean here, by the gate, and then dragged him into the comfort of its den." Sam thought out loud, her hand on her chin as she spoke. "Seems that way." Speed pulled out a cotton swab and swabbed the slowly drying blood. Sam pulled out her camera and took a few shots of the blood spatter. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a small piece of tan fabric. It was about the size of a nickel, if not a penny. Carefully she picked it up with her forensic tweezers and put it in a baggy. Speed had crawled in the cave to collect evidence, "Well, there's not much left of him." He hollered out. "The medical examiner already took the body back to the morgue." Sam spoke up as she moved around to look in some bushes beside the cave. "Ah. What's this?" She lifted up a plastic pebble sized rock. Upon opening it she noticed it was empty, "There should be a key in here… Incase a zoo keeper does forget theirs." "So, who took the key?" Her partner was towering over her, holding up something. "Dunno yet. I guess we'll find out soon enough…" She trailed off before standing and adding, "What's that?" She lazily pointed at the baggy in his hand. "A pill. Just sure what kind it is though. The lab will figure it out." "Maybe Dean dropped it when he was attacked…" Sam blinked a few times. "Maybe. But I doubt it." He put all the evidence they collected into his case. "Why can't it just be an accident? Why's everything a murder with you people?" Sam sighed annoyed. "Because it's Miami. And you're just lazy." He added the last part as he left. "I'm not lazy!" She glared at the back of his head as she followed. "Right." His voice held skepticism. She merely sighed, knowing she wouldn't win against him.

The police had grouped together the witnesses who had seen Dean go in the cage, and also saw how he couldn't get out. Speed had given the evidence to an officer and instructed him to take it back to the lab. "So what exactly happened?" Sam stood beside Speed as he asked one of the other zoo officials questions. "We were just standing there, talking. Dean hand just taken some of the meat into Simba." "Simba?" Sam interrupted, blinking. "Uh, yes. After the Lion King." He nodded with a smile. "Ah! I love the Lion King." She clapped her hands together. "Uhm. So what happened after that?" Speed asked, trying to get him back on topic. "Uh, well… We just heard him scream and that's when Simba attacked. He turned, trying to get out, but it looked like the gate was locked. After that… Well he was dragged into the cave…" Slowly he trailed off, looking at his feet. "Is Simba usually violent?" Sam asked. "No. Not at all. He's gentle being." He shook his head, "I can't understand why he'd attack Dean. He knows him and his sent." "Gentle. Right. He's a beast with wild instincts, locked in a cage." Speed scoffed as he walked away. The zoo keeper didn't say anything after that. "Thank you for your help." Sam spoke up as she turned to catch up to Speed.

"What the Hell was that?" She asked once she was at his side. Her voice held annoyance and anger towards his behavior. "Nothing." He looked away. "Nothing? Nothing my ass. You basically blamed him for the animal's behavior." She stepped in front of him, her hands placed boldly on her hips. "He's the one that put it in a cage. And as far as I'm concerned, anyone of these people could have trapped Dean in there." Speed glowered darkly. "You aren't my partner, you're just working with me on this one case. I didn't choose to baby sit. Got it? Nothing more." He pushed passed her, knocking her off to the side. She stood there, looking towards the ground, her bangs covering her eyes. "Got it." She answered just above a whisper. In truth, she had expected this from them all. They wouldn't open up and accept a new person like her. She was a stranger. An outsider. And it hurt. 'You aren't my partner.' 'I didn't choose to baby sit.' The words echoed in her head. It stung like a fresh bee sting. Suddenly her cell phone rang; knocking her out of her self pity. Unclipping it from her belt, she flipped it open, "Hello?" "Sam! Guess what?" Aaron Peters perky voice greeted her. "What?" She inquired dully. She wasn't in the mood for guessing games anymore. "The fabric you sent me. Well I compared it to the known uniform that the zoo keepers wear. It matched." He said smugly. "Uh huh. That doesn't really help me, considering it could have torn when he was attacked." She sighed upset. "Negative. One of the witnesses said that he was grabbed and dragged straight in the cave. Not through the bushes, nor was he nipped by Simba, correct?" Aaron smirked as he spoke, and Sam could hear it. "Correct. So all we need to do is find someone with a ripped uniform… And we've got a main suspect. Thanks, Peters." She smiled as she flipped the phone shut and ran to find Speed.

* * *

_Ah! This one's abit longer.  
**R&R**  
I'll love you forever.  
Also, I'm already struggling with the fact that I don't want Speedo to die.  
And we're not even close to that part in the story yet.  
I want to stick close to the story and Speed's death is a main event.  
So if all my fabulous readers don't mind...  
Share your opinion on the situation!  
I'm likey to follow your guys' ideas.  
Help!_


	6. Darkness

**Darkness  
Bathroom Mayhem**

"Speedle! Speedle, wait up!" Sam's voice came over the roaring crowd of people. She shoved passed the people until she finally reached his side. She was huffing from her exhausted run through the zoo grounds to locate him. "What now?" He sounded quite annoyed by her very presence. "Aaron called and he said that the fabric he tested had to have come from someone other then the victim." She chocked out between deep breathes. "How so?" He inquired, raising a brow. After a summary of what Aaron said Speed had understood. "So we need to find someone that has a rip in their uniform!" Sam smiled excitedly. "Come on, we should start with the people that weren't assigned to the Simba's den." She started to jog off towards the main office of the zoo. But before she could get very far, she was tugged back by her wrist. Her dark eyes met with Speed's rich ones. "What are you doing?" He almost glared at her like she was psycho. "I'm going to go and ask the superficial for a list of zoo officials that aren't assigned to Simba's den." She stated in a obvious tone. "No, not that." Speed shook his head fiercely, "I mean why are you acting all cheery?" She thought for a moment, wrinkling her nose up a bit, "Um, because I understand. And my main priority is to finish this case." A smile came to her lips as she spoke, "I know I won't be accepted here because I'm an outsider and no one knows me. But I can accept that." Speed stood there in disbelief as he let his hand drop from her wrist. "Now! We've got a case to finish!" She cheered as she dashed off in the direction of the office. That's when Speed began to realize something he didn't want to see. So with a dismissing shake of his head, he was soon following after her.

After they had gotten the list from Mr. Debrowsky, Speed and Sam were soon interviewing their suspects. Everyone seemed to be fairly cooperative with them except for one. His name was Justice McCoy. He was a tall, slender man, about in his late thirties probably. At first he was pretty laid back until Speed mentioned about an episode were a compliant was filed against Mr. McCoy. Apparently Dean heard and saw him using profanity against one of the animals of the zoo. So he reported him under 'abuse against animals'. "Dean was too serious. He didn't realize what he was doing when he filed that compliant." Justice crossed his arms as he leaned back against the wall. "Oh? And what exactly was he doing?" Both Speed and Sam gave him questioning looks. "Getting on my bad side." He replied. "So you threatened him?" Sam asked quickly. "No, broad. I didn't. I merely suggested he back off." Mr. McCoy's thick southern accept dripped on his words. "Sounds like a 'suggestive' threat to me." Sam perked a brow. "Listen. I didn't threaten that little punk!" He took a step forward and that's when Speed intervened. "I think it's time for you to back down." His tone held a hard edge to it. "Yea, yea. I wasn't gonna hit her." Justice promptly took a step back, "Now if that's all. I have a job to do." "You might not be doing it for long." Speed shot back under his breath. For an instant, Speed's odd behavior brought a delicate smile to Sam's lips before she quickly turned away from him. "I don't think he did it, Speed." "What do you mean?" Speed turned to face her, though her back was to him. "He's too cocky. Plus his uniform was in tact. I don't think he could have gotten it fixed that quickly either." She laid her hand on her chin as she spoke. Speed had to agree with her assumption, but wasn't about to stop checking in on Mr. McCoy.

"So now what do we do?" She turned back to her 'partner' and stared. Speed was taken back by the question, 'She's asking me? She's the one that seems to be on a roll…' He thought to himself as he tried to figure a plan. She continued to stare up at him in silence, due to the fact there was a five inch difference between the two. Feeling uncomfortable with the situation Speed opted to just throw caution to the wind, "Lets talk to Mr. Debrowsky again." She nodded on command, following behind him as he led her along. 'I feel like I'm babysitting again…' He thought bitterly to himself. "Mr. Debrowsky?" Speed knocked on the door of the office. "Come on." His voice came from the other side. Both stepped into the office. "We just wanted to ask you some more questions." Speed sounded calm, though Sam was fidgeting for some reason. "I was wandering where the bathrooms are." Sam rubbed the back of her head. "Oh, you can use the one down the hall. It's on the right." A woman answer. Speed looked over his shoulder at the woman that stood in the door way. She wore a pleasant smile as she offered to show Sam. "Ah. Thank you." She smiled as she followed after the young lady, leaving Speed to tend to Mr. Debrowsky.

"Are you and Mr. Speed partners?" She asked as they entered the woman's restroom. "For now we are. I just transferred here." Sam answered after she used the bathroom. While washing her hands, the black haired woman leaned on the wall. "Oh, I see. Well… He does seem like a very handsome man." She smiled more. "Speedo? Blah. I guess so." A slight blush came to her cheeks as she dried her hands under one of those automatic driers. "Aw." She giggled at the younger girl's blush as they came out of the bathroom. Suddenly they both were blindsided and knocked to the floor. "Speed…" Sam's light voice called out to her partner but to no avail. The last thing either of them saw was darkness of coconsciousness.

* * *

_I hope you all enjoyed.  
Seven's coming soon!  
**R&R** is love._


	7. Accusations

**Accusations  
****I'm fine.**

"Is she going to be alright, doctor?" The familiar voice of Caine came to her ears. With her vision blurry, she could barely make out her uncle's figure standing by her beside. She could only guess she was in the hospital. 'What happened…?' She thought to herself, the blinding pain of a headache made her wince. "You're up. Take it easy, Sam. You're in the hospital." Caine moved to her side, laying his hand softly on hers. "What happened to me?" Her voice was horse as she groaned from the pain in her head. "Someone hit you and Ms. Allison, they knocked you out." Horatio stated the obvious though it was probably because he was upset. "Is she gonna be alright?" Sam asked quietly. "Yea. She'll be fine. It seems like you got more of the beating." His voice held angry under his calm appearance. "Speed. Where's Speed?" She remembered leaving him with Mr. Debrowsky so her fear and concern for him rose rather quickly. "He's alright, Sam. He's outside. Would you like to talk to him?" Horatio looked sympathetically down at his niece. "No… When can I go? I have to finish the case." She strained herself as she got up, feeling like she was going to black out once more. "You need to rest. I'll take care of the case." Caine put a gentle yet very firm hand on her shoulder. "No. I have to. I have to finish it." Her stern voice surprised Caine. He knew there was no getting through to her, so he removed his hand. "Alright. Alright. Just take it easy, Sam." She nodded very slowly before he left the room.

After becoming dressed, Sam calmly walked down the corridors of the Hospital until she found the elevator. She pressed the button to go down and waited. It felt like forever for the elevator to come from the first floor to the fifth. 'I wonder if Allison saw who attacked us. I can't remember anything… Only walking out of the bathroom…' She thought to herself, hoping going over the events of what happened would job her memory. Unfortunately it didn't work. As the elevator doors opened she bumped into Speed, who seemed to be rushing out. "What are you doing out? Did they release you? Do you know what happened? Can you remember anything?" Speed spoke so quickly, Sam had to actually read his lips to keep up. As she was flooded with questions, that appeared wouldn't stop, she took a deep breath. "Shut up!" She almost came close to yelling. Thankfully, he listened. "We don't have time for this. We have to finish this case and arrest Mr. Debrowsky." She stepped into the elevator. "You coming?" With a nod, Speed joined her. 'She's as fiery as ever. In fact she's acting like she didn't just get knocked out.' Speed thought to himself as he stood beside her, glancing down at her every few seconds. There was this eerie silence as they stood there. It made Speed more uncomfortable then it made her. When the elevator finally reached the lobby, Sam was the first out. "Where's your car?" She asked as they came to the parking lot. "I don't drive a car." With that he moved over to his motorcycle. She stood there, watching him get on. He tossed her a helmet and she continued to just stare. "You coming?" He couldn't help, but smirk. "Of course." She put the helmet on and slid in behind him. "Hold on tight." He ordered. With a slight blush on her cheeks, which she was glad he couldn't see, she slid her arms around his waist. With that, he floored it, and sped out of the parking lot.

As soon as they were at the Zoo again, they headed straight into the main office. When they opened the door unexpectedly they saw Mr. McCoy sitting in one of the chairs and Mr. Debrowsky behind the desk. "Yo, broad. Sorry to hear of your incident." Justice looked over his shoulder at the two. Speed clenched his fists, anger rising in his dark brown eyes. "It's alright." She smiled pleasantly like it was no big deal. Speed's temper eased down a bit as he watched her. "I just wanted to ask you some questions, if you don't mind." She stated politely. Mr. McCoy got up from his seat, "Well, I guess I'm not needed here." "Actually you are." Sam stopped him, the pleasant smile still on her face. Reluctantly he took his seat back, "Oh really?" "Yup." She nodded, smiling still. "I believe Mr. Debrowsky promised you something to kill Dean." The accusation flowed out of her mouth like a soft breeze. Speed raised his brow at her words, but didn't stop her. "We'll have the evidence soon enough by the way." Mr. Debrowsky stood up quickly, "I can't believe this! You're accusing me?! Why would I want to hurt Dean?! Let alone kill him!" His outraged was over dramatic and both the CSIs picked up on it. "You'll see." She smirked before turning and leaving. "I told you… That you wouldn't have your job for long." A smirk came to Speed's lips before he, too, left.

"So how did you know they did it?" Speed asked when they were a good ways away from the office. "I don't." She shrugged. Speed's eyes widened, "You just accused them." "So? I was upset. Besides, I'm sure they did." She looked over at him and he just sighed, "God. I'll never understand you." "I know." She smiled. "Sam! Oh, Sam! Are you alright?" The dark haired Allison came running over to them. "Yea, I'm fine. What about you? You got pretty banged up too." Her eyes traveled up to the small black and blue bruise on her pale face. "I'm fine. I need to talk to the both of you." She spoke as she led them behind a small shed were they kept the shovels and other equipment. "What's up?" Speed cocked his head to the side, rather impatient at the moment. "I over heard you guys with Mr. Debrowsky and Justice. I think you're right." Her voice held an anxiousness to it as she spoke. "Dean said that Mr. Debrowsky was smuggling something from Africa into the US by using Simba. He didn't go into details, but I think that had something to do with his death." Her dark brown eyes showed sorrow. "You cared for Dean a lot, didn't you?" Sam's odd question caught her slightly off guard. Though she nodded, "Yes. He was a caring man. Please… Punish whoever did this to him." She pleaded. "We will." Speed nodded.

* * *

_I hope you enjoyed chapter seven!  
**R&R**, m'loves!_


	8. Diamonds

Diamonds

Be my kitten?

The sun was beginning to set as the two CSIs finished there work. So far they hadn't found anything to go on. But that wasn't about to stop them. They had scanned ever inch of the exhibit, crawling into every crevice, and collected every spec of dirt. Still nothing. Speed's cell phone rang as he was putting the forensic cases into the back of one of the Hummers. After a few moments of nodding and quick words, he clipped it shut and went over to where Sam was. She was hunched down, prying through some bushes just outside of the Lion's exhibit. "The vet said nothing's wrong with Simba. No drugs, no nothing." He delivered the bad news. There was an irritated sigh coming from her as she slowly stood up. "Figures." "Come on. It's almost dark. We'll call it a night and start fresh in the morning." Speed turned away from her, heading to his bike. She stood there for a moment. "I have nothing to go home to." She mumbled softly which made Speed stop for a few moments. "I'm gonna stay here. I'm sure there's something we missed." She spoke quickly, looking around again. "Well I don't feel comfortable leaving you here alone." Speed finally said as she was examining the gate for the hundredth time. "Such a gentle men." She rolled her eyes. He scoffed quietly at her comment. "Speed. Be my kitten?" Sam asked, looking over the gate. He gave her a questioning look, but went along with it.

Speed and Sam stood in the large exhibit. She was studying the gate with great precision. "Alright. The witnesses said that Dean was standing here…" She moved in front of the gate. "Simba was… Right about there." As she pointed, Speed moved to that spot. "Now, Dean's back was too him. And he came up behind Dean…" As she spoke, her hands were on the gate like Dean would have had them. She was shaking it slightly, as if she was trying to get out, like he might have been doing. The next thing she knew, Speed was right behind her, his body unusually close to hers. His arms reached around, his hands gripping the gate as he spoke, "Why'd the lion attack its prey?" His hot breath tickled her ear as he leaned down. The sent of his cologne made her squirm slightly. And that's when it hit her. Her eyes widened as she remembered the distinctive smell of meat on Dean. "Fresh meat! That's why Simba attacked." She turned to face him and that's when they both realized just how close they were. Her cheeks flushed a bright red and Speed backed off a bit, looking away out of embarrassment. "So we know why and how…" He spoke by trying to ease the tension now between them. "Somehow we have to prove that Mr. Debrowsky took the spare key, planted the scent on Dean, and configured this whole plan." Placing her hand on her chin as she spoke. "Where do they keep Simba when he's not in here?" Speed suddenly asked. "The small kennel. Follow me." She answered, leading him out of the pen.

"We haven't gone over this yet." She said as they stood in front of the small kennel where Simba was transported in. "Lets do this." He slid on his latex gloves as he dusted for finger prints and collected fibers. Sam, on the other hand, stood outside and just stared at the cage. Her dark eyes followed the ridges and curves to every extent. Everything seemed normal to her. Except for the one bar at the end. It wasn't rusted at the bottom like the others. A new one. She pulled out her camera and took a few pictures at different angles of it. "Speed. Check this out." She motioned to the bar. He crawled out of the small cage and looked at what she was staring at. "Can you get it loose?" She questioned, smiling a bit. He nodded, putting his flashlight down. Slowly he gripped the bar tightly and tugged on it. At first it was pretty sturdy and wasn't budging. After a few more moments he finally pulled it loose. Nothing was odd about it. "Waste of time." Speed mumbled under his breath. Sam reached out and took the bar from him. She shook it a few times, holding her hand out at the end. With a 'cling' noise a small baggy slid out and landed on her palm. "What is it?" Her partner asked, leaning close. She held it up with a triumphant smirk, "Diamonds."


	9. Busted

**Busted  
****Blood Diamonds**

Darkness surrounded Miami as the city came to life. The night owls of the busy city came out to play. The loud thumping music of the night clubs boomed as the beautiful lights flashed. Most of the CSIs had headed home for the night or had gone out to enjoy their free time. Except one that were working late into the night. The female had pulled her hair up into a tight pony tail as she leaned over the lab table. Under the microscope was a small diamond, which she appeared to be examining. She leaned away from the microscope with a sigh. "Blood diamonds." She muttered softly. "Blood diamonds?" The familiar voice of her partner made her jump. "What are you doing here, Speedo?" She raised a brow, her breathing now returning to normal. "I think they question is… Why are you _still_ here?" He contradicted as he sat his biker helmet on the other counter. "Because I have no life." Sam smirked, looking back through the microscope. "So what exactly are 'blood diamonds'?" He asked, leaning on the counter. "Illegally distributed diamonds. Usually from central and west Africa… They sell them to profit wars and human rights abuses." She answered, looking over at him. "How do you know so much?" He couldn't help, but ask with a suspicious hint in his voice. "Ah. I have a friend that loves diamonds. The legal kind." She added quickly, glancing at him from the corner of her eye. "So the diamonds are real then." He took his turn looking through the microscope. "Mhm. Very real." "Anyway to trace them?" He then asked. "Nope. But… I have a plan." She smirked deviously. "Oh really? Do tell."

When dawn broke the next day Sam and Speed were standing outside the busy zoo once again. They were talking amongst their selves when Allison came rushing up to them. "I heard you guys got a break in the case?" She seemed excited as she looked at them. "You could say that." Speed didn't feel like going into details with her. "We need to get back to work." Sam spoke up, wanting to be as polite as possible. "Oh, yea. Sorry about bothering you." She apologized with a slight blush of embarrassment on her cheeks. After she had left Sam looked up at Speed, "How'd she know?" "I don't know. But I'd like to find out. Come on." He headed into the zoo to investigate a little more. Sam hesitated for a moment, thinking to herself. Once she thought about everything, it all seemed to piece together slowly. Soon she followed after Speed. She still hadn't clearly put everything into prospective yet, but she could feel she was getting close. With all the evidence, there was still something missing. Something crucial, though she didn't know what. During her pondering time, she hadn't realized Speed had stopped, and because of this, she bumped right into him. "Hm? You alright? You seem a little preoccupied." He looked over his shoulder at her. She merely shook her head. "Mr. Debrowsky will see you now." The secretary escorted them into his office.

"So are you here to accuse me and harass me some more?" He asked roughly. Earlier in the morning, Speed had advised Sam to keep quiet during their little interview. Well, more like he ordered. So she just leaned back against the wall and let him do his thing. "We found some evidence that proves you were smuggling diamonds from Africa by using Simba's cage as a cover." Speed confronted him as he placed pictures of the diamonds and Simba's cage on Mr. Debrowsky's desk. He took one look at the pictures before saying, "You have no proof that it was me. It could have been one of my employee's for all you know." "Right now. We've got some detectives talking to Justice. And believe me, he's going to roll on you." Speed shot back, keeping his never ending cool. "He's got nothing to say." He scoffed. "You really think he's going to spend twenty-five years to life in jail for you?" He raised a brow. There was a moment of silence before he suddenly shifted his sight to the girl leaning quietly against the wall. "Why are you so quiet? Have nothing insulting to say to me? I bet your partner silenced you." A crooked smirk came to the arrogant man's face. "I think you should worry about your own well being." Speed interrupted. "Like I said before. Justice has nothing to say." Mr. Debrowsky sneered. At that point, Sam raised her fist and tapped lightly on the door beside her. The door slowly swung open and Justice stood there in handcuffs. "Really now? So Justice are you going to be the only one going down for Dean's murder?" Sam raised a brow. "Hell no. I'll give a statement. I'll tell you all you people need to know." Justice glared towards his former boss. "Don't you say anything, Justice. I swear you'll regret it." Mr. Debrowsky shot up out of his chair, matching Justice's own glare. "He's got nothing to lose. And you're not in the position to threaten other's." Speed interjected the two. "Explain what happened, Justice." He then ordered. "Mr. Debrowsky told me he'd give me half of the diamonds if I were to off Dean for him. He's been smuggling them into the US since a few years ago. Dean found out when him and Allison were testing to see if the diamonds were real or not." Justice's last comment made Sam's eyes widen. "Allison?" She inquired. "Yea. That broad. She's in on it too. It was both their idea to kill Dean so he couldn't tell the police." Justice nodded. "Arrest Allison and Mr. Debrowsky." Speed ordered to the officers. With that, they took the other two into custody. Allison was found heading towards the airport. Thankfully the police were able to capture her before she made it out of the state. She was more then likely heading out of Miami's jurisdiction.

Once back at the lab, via Speed's bike, Horatio met them at the door. "Good job, you two. I knew you'd figure it out sometime. You both should get some rest now." He slid on his signature sunglasses. "Rest? Rest… I'm going to bed." She twitched, dragging her feet as she shuffled passed him. "She did a good job, Horatio. She was up all night and even though she won't admit it. It was mostly her work." Speed nodded as he then followed Sam into the huge building. Horatio smiled to himself as he watched the two leave. "I heard you two completed the Simba case." Calleigh smiled as she passed them as they were stepping off the elevator. "Mhm. Yea. It was mostly Speed." Sam yawned, walking passed her also. "Oh really?" Calleigh turned back to Speed. "No. She's lying." He shook his head and went after her again. "Are those two partners now or something?" Delko seemingly appeared out of no where. "I don't know." They looked after them. Sam kept stumbling and tripping over nothing. "Is she alright?" Delko looked at the girl funny. "Long night. No sleep." Calleigh smiled as she stepped onto the elevator. "Hm…" Delko followed pursuit.

"Sleepy. Sleepy. Sleepy." Sam collapsed on the couch in the staff room. "You can't sleep here. You have to go home." He poured himself a cup of coffee. "I dun wanna go home. It's too far away." She whined softly, rolling over on the couch so her back was to him. "I'll take you home. That way you won't get in a car crash by falling asleep at the wheel." He took a sip of coffee. She shook her head quietly. "Come on." Slowly he got up and leaned over her. She looked so peaceful, just laying there. "Hey… Wake up…" He spoke softly, shaking her shoulder lightly. She made a small noise, "Leave me alone…" "Not until you're off the couch." He shot back, his voice still gentle. With a small sigh, she opened her eyes half way and looked at him. "Speedo. Shoo. Shoo." He sighed heavily, that nickname really annoyed him, and he knew she knew that. "Fine." He shook his head, irritated again. He stood up and she turned away from him once again. With that she felt the calmness of sleep over take her. Though she never saw Speed place the extra blanket over her sleeping body. "Goodnight. I'll see you later." He mumbled, picking his jacket up, and leaving the staff room.

* * *

_Woo! Case solved!  
Lame ending, I know.  
But I was running out of ideas.  
-Pout-  
Anyway!  
**R&R**, m'loves.  
-Heart-_


	10. Sex Appeal

_Yush! A new case has been developed!  
My sister had brought up this one.  
And since I had no cases, why not give it a shot?_

_Also, someone brought up about wanting the chapters longer.  
Um, I think that's what they ment.  
In Microsoft Word it looks a lot longer...  
I'm sorry that it doesn't look long when I actually put it on FanFiction u.u  
I try! I really do! I rack my brain writing.  
So I made this one a little bit longer then usual.  
DX  
Anyway, I hope you enjoy._

**

* * *

**

**Sex Appeal  
****No One Deserves To Be Raped**

As the dawn rose over Miami's towering buildings and beautiful beaches. The night owls scurried to bed and the early birds fluttered to life. The busy morning horns began blowing as people rushed to work. The beach babes threw on their bikinis and headed into the crisp sun. The surfers grabbed their boards and hurried into the cool water. The party atmosphere was interrupted by the terrible scream of a woman. She came running up the beach and grabbed the nearest coast guard's arm. "I think there's a dead body by the peers!" With that the coast guard radioed for the police and CSI unit.

"What do we have?" Horatio asked, standing beside Speed as they surveyed the crime scene. "A woman came running up to the coast guard saying there was a dead body down here. He went to check it out and find her still half alive. The EMTs took her to the hospital." He explained, his camera in hand. "Do we know if she was raped?" Horatio asked. "Yea. Most likely. She was only wearing a long shirt. We bagged it as evidence." He snapped pictures as he talked. "Where's Sam?" Horatio looked around, noticing the absence of his niece. "She rode along. In the hope that the girl might tell her something." Speed looked up at Horatio, since he was in crouched position to take close ups. "I see." He slid on his sunglasses and headed to his Hummer.

Meanwhile, at the hospital. "Can you remember what happened before you were attacked?" Sam stood over the young woman, that was laying in the hospital bed. She had been beaten severally, but was about to talk. "I was coming from work… And I decided to just walk up on the board walk… There wasn't a lot of people. One or two… I think one was a homeless man, he was just laying on the concrete. The other was stumbling around… I think he was drunk. But he was all the way down at the end." She paused to recollect on the events. "I was leaning against the railing, staring down at the ocean. And all of a sudden someone came up from behind me and put their hand around my mouth. I tried to fight, but the man was so… strong. He dragged me down the steps that led to underneath the boardwalk. And he proceeded to rape me…" At that point she started to close up again. "Where do you work, Lain?" Sam asked quickly. "I… Work at a gentlemen's club." She mumbled, slightly ashamed. With that Sam nodded and comfortingly patted Lain on the shoulder. "We're going to get him." Lain nodded, thankful that she wasn't judged. Swiftly Sam left the hospital room to locate her partner.

She found him standing outside the Hospital, beside his bike. "What'd you find out?" He questioned. "Just that she was raped, she's emotional, and she works at a gentlemen's club." She had put her small notepad into the back pocket of her pants. "A stripper." He mumbled disgustedly. "Everyone has their ways of making a living." Sam shrugged nonchalant. Speed slid onto the seat of his bike, "So you agree with her method of making money?" "I agree that no one deserves to be beaten and raped." She placed her hand on her hip, a willful look reflected in her eyes as the sun beat down on her confident figure. He knew she had a huge point and he agreed with her, but never would admit it. He slipped on his helmet and motioned for her to sit down on the back. She had adjusted to riding on the back of Speed's motorcycle, due to the fact that she hated to drive. Though it wouldn't make much difference, Speed was a reckless driver to say the least. But it was a thrilling rush to be going at 80 miles per hour, with the wind pressing against you, and never knowing if you're gonna smash into a wall because of Speed's need for speed. Thus she enclosed her arms securely around Speed's waist and held on for dear life as he zipped onto the main road.

Speed slowed down as they pulled into the parking lot of 'Sex Appeal'. It was a rather large building for a strip club. There was a neon blue sign outside that would flicker 'open' at night, as it was morning, the sign wasn't flickering. "Do you think anyone's even here?" Sam inquired, looking at the abandoned lot. "Yea. They're probably still cleaning up…" He spoke as he walked up to the front door and rattled it. There was an unusual silence as they waited. The clicking of a lock broke through it as a bald man that looked around twenty opened the door. He was a muscular man, wearing leather pants, black sunglasses, black steel toed boots, and a black sleeveless shirt with the 'Sex Appeal' logo over his heart. "We're closed." His voice was icy, firm, and brash. "We aren't here for entertainment. We have some questions about a Lain Emerson." Speed held up her picture, though her face was bruised the man nodded, moving aside so they could get in. "What happened to her?" He removed his sunglasses, and Sam noticed how soft and compassionate his green eyes were. 'Appearances really are deceiving.' She thought to herself as Speed explained. "I don't know anyone who would want to hurt her. She's a good girl. Just trying to make a living like everyone else." He massaged his forehead, trying to recall anyone that was acting odd that night. "Most of them were drunk. You know. We've had to thrown a few out because they got pushy or too touchy with the girls. It made them uncomfortable." He then proceeded around the bar counter and pulled out a clipboard. "You guys don't need a warrant for this correct? It's not like a doctor patient thing. They're just men that need an outlet." He mumbled, handing Speed the clipboard. "That's all my staff, it should tell you who worked last night. Talk to them to see if anyone was acting out of place." He nodded. "Thank you." Speed nodded also, before heading out to the parking lot. "Hey…" He stopped Sam for a moment. "Catch the son of a bitch that did this, okay?" She smirked, "It's our job."

"Well the first person that was on duty last night was an Adam Kimler." Speed spoke as his eyes gazed over the paper in front of him. They were still in Sex Appeal's parking lot, debating what they should do next. "Shouldn't the police interview the suspects though?" Sam inquired dully. "Well, we have the list. So lets save them time and us light." He glanced from the paper to her. There was something oddly different about her this morning. She was leaning slightly on his bike, her hair pulled up into a messy bun with loose strands, her faded jean jacket wasn't buttoned, so he could see she was wearing an average black short sleeve shirt underneath it, her pants were hip hugging jeans, and in her hand was a cup of coffee. She looked normal. But there was something off about it. "Hey… Speedo. Stop undressing me with your eyes." She casually took a sip of her warm coffee. 'That's it… That's what's off about her. She's smug today.' He glared at her, "You wish." She scoffed, taking another sip of coffee, "You bet I do." Her sarcastic little come back brought a very small smile to his lips. "Come on. Lets get to work." She took a last sip of coffee, nodding in agreement.

* * *

_Remember to R&R, m'friends!  
I wuv j00 allz -Heart-_


End file.
